The Ink Collection, designed by Apiwat Chitapanya for Thai brandMasaya, is a series of furniture design inspired by the rhythm, movement and flow of Chinese calligraphy painting.

The ancient writing practice is treasured as a form of art in China and it holds a long history of both pride and pleasure for the country. In reference to the sweeping style of the written characters, Chitapanya’s latest pieces have been created to resemble the continuous, flowing movement of the ink.

Chitapanya’sfurniture design comprises of a dining chair, a stool and a bench. The dining chair is inspired by the richer, denser and better-defined structure of the calligraphy characters, thus, giving poise to the chair. The tips of the legs are more streamlined and pointed, mirroring the cursive scripts when the brushstrokes are faster.

The second part of the Ink Collection is the stool and bench, these two pieces are inspired by the continuous movement of the brush that creates wholesome and delicate lettering. Built using brass, this furniture design evokes a dynamic yet fragile aesthetic, perfectly in keeping with the style of Chinese painting. Inspired by the synchronization and harmonization of calligraphy, the pieces intended to give pleasure to the users both visually and physically, similarly the ancient Chinese art form.

The main concept of the artist’s furniture design is to create furniture beyond functional, by blending art and design together in order to create a unique design with value-added to the work. Not only thinking carefully about its function but always merging beauty and artistic aesthetics into his collections.

In designing furniture, the selection of materials such as stainless steel, iron, brass, and wood, to be the main material for his furniture design has a purpose of depicting stories inspired by nature, which Apiwat considers being a key component of creative thinking. He likes using natural shapes for interpretation and redesigns them to form surreal, unique and unusual shape furniture, thus, adding fantasy to users and audiences.